The Tipp Center
The Tipp Center is a 44,000 square-foot fully equipped state-of-the-art office building surrounded by ten acres just outside the downtown area of Tipp City. The owner of the building is a modern-day Lydia (Acts 16). She believes in the power of the Spirit of the ConneXion, and of the concepts that undergird it. I first toured this building in May of 2017, after a phone call from a brother in Christ both I and the owner of the building shared.
By the time this visit was over, she and I kneeled and prayed together for God’s will for the building. I remember the day a few weeks later when I boldly launched into my understanding of the Spirit of ConneXion. It turns out that I was preaching to the choir. It was a perspective that she long believed to be true, even if she didn’t use the same words. We began to pray and dream of what that might look like for this jewel of an office center. I sought the input of trusted spiritual leaders. One was Chuck Proudfit of At Work on Purpose based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Another was Jeff McSwain, Christian theologian, author, and founder of Reality Ministries in Durham, North Carolina. We were both looking for ways to live out doing ministry via the Spirit of ConneXion, and a new relationship has emerged between me and this wonderful sister in Christ. A new business center has now opened operating on the concept of “living out” and “giving out” the Spirit of ConneXion. The building is called The Tipp Center, and its slogan is “connecting business, community, and entrepreneurs.” * This owner not only leases business space for non-profits and for-profits but also graciously shares the facility as a “connection center” of sorts for a variety of community initiatives. It’s rapidly becoming a regional civic and cultural center. Three churches now meet in the facility as well.
I retired from formal pastoring in 2021, and I now serve as a chaplain for the emotional and spiritual needs of the people using the building in any way I can be of service. I like to think that I encourage the occupants to recognize that there is more connection between the people in this connection center than they may realize! As of this writing, it is now 70% occupied.
It’s a bold experiment that is showing promise, and it is already bearing fruit. People seem to sense the Spirit when they walk into the building. Secular events almost feel like an old-time church potluck after a very good worship service. People who walk in with world-weary faces leave smiling with the joy and playfulness given by the Spirit. You can begin to see the visionary wheels turning in people’s heads as they grasp the vision and seek to connect the good that can come into the community by a center such as this.
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* My friend Jeff McSwain, who helped me articulate some of the earliest visions of this ministry, says it’s really the “T.I.P.P.” Center – the Trinitarian Incarnational Proclamation and Practice Center. My prayer is that it will become a local, regional, national, and international model for other such locations.
You can read more about the Tipp Center, and the partner ministries who have offered support for its development, at the following links:
Starting a Marketplace “Church” - At Work on Purpose